Wendy’s Just Made A Huge Change To Their French Fries–And Customers Are So Mad
October 20, 2021 by Justine Schwartz
Did Wendy’s just ruin their bestselling menu item, french fries!? That’s what customers who are flooding Reddit, Twitter and other social media platforms are saying. In case you missed it, the restaurant re-launched this popular menu staple at the end of the summer, and now patrons of the food chain are coming out with all kinds of complaints about the new taste and texture of the classic side. According to the online reactions we’ve seen so far, people have a *very* strong dislike for the new “takeout-friendly” fries. Yikes!
New Delivery-Friendly FriesThe Ohio-based chain introduced a new French fry recipe in August that was meant to be more takeout-friendly in the pandemic era. As customers have stopped dining-in amid Covid, and are receiving their orders increasingly by takeout or delivery, Wendy’s like other U.S. food chains have had to evolve its menu accordingly.
The goal of the re-launch was to create a crispier, longer-lasting fry that would hold up in the car ride from the restaurant to the customer–whether that be in the customer’s car or a delivery driver. A “senior specialist of culinary” for the company named Emily Kessler said at the time,” We had to make sure that our fries stood up to the delivery experience, so they have the same fry texture and crispiness.” Which totally makes sense.
The company even put their money where their mouth was, offering to replace customer’s orders if the fries aren’t as hot and crispy as promised, and launching an ad campaign targeted at competitor McDonald’s “cold and soggy” frites. “They’re even preferred 2-to-1 over McDonald’s,” the voice over claims in the ad.